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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22740565">Attrition</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/StringOfLetters/pseuds/StringOfLetters'>StringOfLetters</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>AU, F/M, One Shot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 04:35:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>311</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22740565</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/StringOfLetters/pseuds/StringOfLetters</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"If an enemy kills an enemy, there is nothing to excite pity in the act or the intention...<br/>But when the tragic incident occurs between those who are near or dear to one another, these are the situations to be looked for by the poet."</p><p>-Aristotle’s Poetics</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes/Original Female Character(s), James "Bucky" Barnes/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Attrition</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>My posting schedule has never been this crazy, but I've been so busy recently. Hopefully there won't be another six month hiatus! Also, feel free to leave a comment with a prompt!</p><p>Thanks for reading :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Kill her.” The agent growled into Bucky’s ear. “The girl needs to learn her lesson.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">They were always so careful, so vigilant, but the first afternoon they’d let their guard down for even the slightest second would turn out to be the last. There was no way to hide anything, because there was no way his life was allowed to be his.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Bucky's arm was shaking, the small pistol aimed straight at her head.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">No one else would think of looking into the alleyway. They’d hear the shot, but that would be it. He couldn’t save her. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You never actually loved her.” The agent smirked. "You were lonely, and you were desperate, and you were pretending.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She knew that wasn’t true, and she knew Bucky didn’t want to do this. All of the times they’d lay in bed and talked- when she’d try to help him reclaim some of his memories, after he’d escaped- he’d told her he hated the person they’d made him become.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You’re going to plant a bullet right between her pretty little eyes, and then you’re going to clean it up. Every last blood stain."</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“No.” He whispered. “No. I’m not your puppet.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The agent hesitated, before picking up his own gun, aiming it at Bucky. “I’m giving you five seconds before the both of you are dead.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She could… </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her mind was swimming; she could barely focus on anything else.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Five.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">But she could… </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He’d told her how to hide the little gun; he’d shown her how to use it. He’d said not to unless it was an emergency, and this was one.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Four."</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">But would her aim be good enough?</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Three."</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She reached for it quickly.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It happened before she could blink. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Two gunshots rang out, one after the other, and two bodies fell to the ground, blood spilling out onto the pavement below them.</span>
</p>
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